Beauty & The Bear

2

Back at my apartment Jinxy comes charging at me ready to greet me, he finds a spot to call his own and curls up into a ball and has a nap. I go upstairs and find the bedroom, checking it out for the first time. The bed is decent enough, slightly hard but it will do. The bathroom has a shower but no tub and I want to cry, all I wanted was a hot bath. I sigh and go back downstairs, I still have to bring in the rest of the boxes from the car.

I don’t have a lot of stuff, fortunately, it doesn’t take me long, three suitcases and eight boxes later and I have everything inside. I strip the bedding and toss it into the washer before remaking the bed and spreading my blanket out on the bed. One of the few sentimental things I have. My mother made it for me when I was a child, it’s tattered now from years of use but it reminds me of her whenever I look at it.

“I miss you” I murmur as I trace my fingertips over the wool gently.

Tears prick in the corners of my eyes, I shake my head, trying to abolish any and all thoughts of my past. I’m here for a fresh start, not to relive my past.

After putting away my clothing and having a shower I head to bed. Pulling the covers over me, there’s a storm coming in, the trees outside my window shake. Rain pelts against the glass, making it impossible to fall asleep, Jinxy curls up under the covers beside me, shaking in fear from the storm.

I’ve never experienced a storm like this before, thunder cracks in the sky. The lightning is constant, I pull my blanket over my head and snuggle close with Jinxy.

The next few weeks are hard, I wake early every morning and head to the shop, making soaps to try and get everything ready for my opening date, not leaving until late in the evenings. I’m running out of supplies and will have to make a trip to the nearest Costco sooner than expected but it’s not a big issue, I would have to do it eventually anyways.

I go next door to see Kaine, his shop is still open, it usually is when I leave. When I step inside I’m in awe of what I see. The furniture is exquisite, quality far beyond what you’d expect from a small town carpenter.

“I’m just about to close up for the night” Kaine calls from the back room.

I walk around the showroom as I wait for him to come out to greet me, hopefully he can answer my question.

I’m looking at a beautiful rocking chair when I sense his presence behind me,

“Evening Hayley. It’s great to see you again”

“Hi, your work is beautiful.. I’ve never seen so much talent and attention to detail, it’s clear you pour your heart into your work”

His cheeks flush slightly at the compliment, he rubs the back of his neck and looks away, “thank you... It’s not often someone admires my work with such fondness”

I straighten up, “I umm, I wanted to ask you something… I was wondering if there are any hiking trails around here that are good for beginners?”

“Have you hiked before?” He looks at me out of the corner of his eye

“Not a lot, but I’ve been cooped up inside so much lately I need some fresh air and I want to explore the area more”

“Well, there’s Canyon Peak. It’s only a few hours from start to finish. It’s laid out pretty clearly. There’s a river you follow along and you get a great view of the wildlife in the area, but you still have to be careful of predators if you go in the afternoon into the evening so early morning is best”

“Predators?” My interest is piqued.

“Yeah, we have bears, cougars and wolves. It’s dangerous if you don’t know your way around”

“I’m sure I’ll be fine. I have bear spray” I smile up at him

He chuckles, “well then I suppose you’re set” He disappears behind the cash desk, I hear him rummaging around before he reappears with a pamphlet. He hands it to me, it’s well worn with side notes written by hand.

“This is the best map you’ll find around here. Guaranteed to not get lost, but if you do by some miracle, I am part of the town’s search and rescue. So if your not back by three pm I’ll be out looking for you”

Great, that makes me feel very reassured

I take the map from him, “Thank you”

“Pack lots of water, it’s quite the incline”

In the morning I pack myself a lunch and three bottles of water, hoping it will be enough. Jinxy seems anxious about me leaving but I scratch him behind the ears and give him a kiss on top of his head and tell him I'll be home soon.

Taking the map out of my pocket I head to the starting point, about a twenty minute walk from my house, on the edge of town. There’s an old beaten path that leads to a small creek, the instructions say to follow the creek until it opens up to a river.

A deer peacefully grazes across the river, paying no mind to me. I watch it for a few minutes before continuing on my way. It’s so surreal out here, the trees cast a shadow over the forest floor. It doesn’t take me very long to reach the peak which happens to be the top of a waterfall, maybe an hour. I set up a little picnic for myself and enjoy the view.

After eating I glance down the waterfall to see how far down it is, it doesn’t look like a far hike down. Maybe next time I can go down and into the pool below for a swim, the water looks refreshing enough.

Checking the time I still have three hours before Kaine said I need to be back… I have plenty of time to enjoy the water now…

I ease myself down the side of the waterfall, the rocks are slimy and my footing is uneasy. I’m already halfway down when I realise this might not have been my greatest idea. I try to grab onto a branch to hoist myself back up but it’s not strong enough to support my weight.

The branch uproots and I go tumbling down the rest of the way, crashing into the ground, half in the water. I scream in pain, tears springing to my eyes. I crawl over to the bank and lay on my back, pulling my legs up to my chest.

I roll to my side, my ankle throbs. I untie my shoes and kick them off, looking around to make sure there’s no one around. I slip into the water, it’s frigid cold but feels great on my ankle and now sore muscles. I can feel a long cut on my leg, up my thigh. I gently peel my pants off to inspect the damage and sure enough I’m bleeding, it’s not heavy but enough that I will need a bandage.

“Well f**k” I sigh

I pull my pants back on, they are completely ruined now, the gash up the side has exposed my leg completely. My left arm has a nasty looking road rash on it from sliding down the rocks, it will need to be cleaned. I slowly submerge my body further into the water, feeling the cool water engulf me. After sitting in the water for a bit I crawl out, pulling my shoes back on.

My ankle throbs but I force myself to climb back up the side of the waterfall, this time I choose a different path, one that’s not so close to the water. It’s not worn, so finding my footing isn't easy, it takes me about twenty minutes to get back up, I'm panting by the time I get to the top.

Glancing down at my watch I see I have an hour and ten minutes to get back.

Fuck, how did I waste so much time?

Hightailing it back to the trail, my ankle protests painfully, slowing me down considerably.

This is not good. But I've been through a hell of a lot worse. I grind my teeth and push through the pain.

I have to stop several times to catch my breath. Tears are rolling down my cheeks now and I hear thunder clap in the distance,

Great, just f*****g great. Just what I need right now.

The rain starts pummeling down on me as I continue limping my way through the forest, I'm freezing cold and exhausted. I find coverage under a tree nearby, resting my head on the bark. I didn't wear a jacket because it was so nice when I left this morning, I didn't think to check the forecast. It only ever rains at night.

I have no choice but to wait out the rain, I can't keep going in this. It's raining so heavily I can't even see.

One things for sure, I will not be hiking again anytime soon. Maybe ever.

I close my eyes hoping to get some rest while I wait out the storm, thunder roars above me, cracking in the sky. I’m shivering something fierce and wondering if Jinxy is scared from the thunder and hiding somewhere in the house right now. Does he mind the storms when I’m not there with him or does my own fear transfer onto him and he senses it and the only reason he curls up beside me is to help keep me calm and comforted.

Feeling helpless, lost and alone in the woods that I don’t know I sigh and pinch my eyes shut harder, in hope I can drown out the rain somehow with my mind.

My head snaps to the side when I hear what I think is a growl.

Fuck this. No way am I staying here to be eaten by wolves or bears as Kaine said where in the woods.

I force myself to my feet and bolt into the rain, if I am to be the meal of a wolf today they would have to work for it. I wouldn’t be easy prey. I’ve already been easy prey too many times in my life and it wasn’t ever going to happen again.

Staggering more than running, through the cold I don’t know where the path even is anymore because I can’t see a thing, I feel even more lost then before but I don’t care.

I finally see my saving grace, the river. If I stay along the river I’ll be golden, it will lead me right back to the beginning of the path and I’ll be home free at last. Then I’ll never step foot in these godforsaken woods again.

I sigh with relief and take a glance behind me to see if I can see anything following me. I continue down the river, not fully aware that it is widening on me. I glance around, I don’t remember any of this scenery. I look around me harder, the river is wider then I remember, I am sure of it now. I went the wrong way. I scream in frustration.

Lightning lights the sky just over where I’m standing and thunder cracks in the air so loud it rumbles the ground. Fear jolts thru my entire body so hard I crouch down like a child, my hands over my head protectively. I feel my body tremble.

Growls emerge from the treeline, this time I’m positive I’m not hearing things. I look up between my fingers and see two very large wolves stalking towards their prey. Me. I slowly stand up, talking a step back, then another. Ready to bolt, make a run for it. Ignoring the searing pain in my ankle, me and the wolves watch one another. I shift my weight from one leg to another, as I’m about to make my escape the f*****g ground caves in and I go crashing into the river below.

I claw at the earth, trying to grab onto something to anchor me to the ground but the rain has made everything so soft it’s all turned to mud. The wolves watch me with curiosity before they take off back into the woods. Clearly they can see I am already a lost cause, the river will sweep me away, drowning me and I’ll wash up somewhere in a week. A corpse.

I continue to claw at the ground, something, anything. My backpack is weighing me down. The current is taking me to the center of the river, and with the flood happening from the rain the river is deep, I’m not a strong swimmer to begin with. I’m already exhausted. I’m having a hard enough time keeping my head above water as it is, my ankle is killing me, I can’t keep kicking for much longer. I turn to my side, giving up. I’m so very tired.

The rock hits me before I have time to even register it’s there. Everything goes dark. This is how I die.